Bat (Franchise)
Bats are animals seen occasionally in the DreamWorks Dragons Franchise. Description Bats are seen on occasion flying through caves. They are usually a media blur, and hard to get screenshots of. They are black and usually screeching. In actuality, while bats can be black in color, they can also be grey and brown. Bats are the only fully flight-capable mammal on the planet and are found worldwide. Bats are a large Order of mammal (Chiroptera) with over 1,000 species across the world. A few species Vikings may have encountered include: Northern bat (Eptesicus nilssonii), Common Pipistrelle (Pipistrellus pipistrellus), and the Common Noctule (Nyctalus noctula). Diet As a group, bats have a fairly diverse diet. The majority of species, however, are insectivores. They have a huge impact on the insect population, and if bat numbers continue to decline, insect numbers increase, particularly human pests such as mosquitoes. Some other species are frugivores - eat fruit and even nectar. There are other species that are mostly carnivorous, eating other small creatures such as frogs, lizards, and birds. A more well-known group of bats - the vampire bats - consume blood of other animals. Function In the Franchise, bats are mentioned as a food item for dragons, though it is also implied they may also upset their stomachs. In reality, a few human cultures consume bats. Otherwise, they serve important environmental functions such as keeping insect populations in check and pollinating flowers. Appearances ''Dragons: Race to the Edge'' Season 2 When Fishlegs and Hiccup travel to Lycanwing Island to get to the bottom of the Lycanwing curse during the events of "Bad Moon Rising", a flock of bats and Night Terrors fly screaming out of the cave they must enter. In "Edge of Disaster, Part 1", Johann starts one of his stories with how he was being attacked by rabid wild fruit bats off the coast of Palau, which then leads to Snotlout calling Johann "Captain Fruit Bat". Season 4 In "The Longest Day", Tuffnut and Ruffnut, under the influence of insomnia, were hallucinating bats. Tuffnut had imagined Fruit Bats playing with him, remarking that they were 'cuddly and playful and loyal, like flying yak-rats' and started grabbing at the air before Ruffnut interjects, claiming that 'those' were not fruit bats, as fruit bats only come out of hibernation on the third day of spring, whereas it was only the first on the day in question. She then deduces that 'those' were dwarf split-nose bats. Fruit bats, also known as megabats, are real bats that make up the order Megachiroptera. Several species in this order are also known as "flying foxes" due to their dog-like facial structure. Unlike smaller bats, they are not able to produce echolocation. They, true to their name, eat almost entirely fruit, though some species are known to subsist on nectar. These bats live in Africa, Asia, Australia, and the Middle East, so it is unlikely that historical Vikings would ever have encountered these bats. While there is no known bat called the Dwarf Split-nose Bat, there is a similarly named bat called the Dwarf slit-faced bat. This bat lives in forests in west and central Africa, so it is unlikely that historical Vikings would ever have encountered these bats. In "Out of the Frying Pan", Hiccup and Fishlegs enter the volcano of Caldera Cay and believe there are bats in there. However, they discover instead the Fire Terrors. Comics "Underworld" Bats are mentioned briefly in this comic by Fishlegs, as the Dragon Riders contemplate going into the Caves of Jotunn. He fears being attacked by bats, and exclaims that he dislikes them. "Smeltdown" In the minicomic "Smeltdown", Ruffnut and Tuffnut decide to feed Barf and Belch several types of meat that don't agree with them to create a massive fire in the Flame-Tastic Inferno-Class Firepower-Plus. The specific variety of bat that is mentioned is a Horseshoe bat (family Rinolophidae) Horseshoe bats are a family of bats that can be distinguished by the large, horseshoe-shaped protuberances on their noses, also known as "noseleafs". These are used for species recognition between the members of the family. They are small, insectivorous, and live in temperate and tropical regions of southern Europe, Africa, Asia, and northern and eastern Australia. Thus, it is unlikely that historical Vikings would ever have encountered these bats. Games ''School of Dragons There are bats flying around the cavern roofs in the Whispering Death tunnels beneath Berk. Other Mentions Toothless The development of Toothless (and by extension, Night Furies) has involved inspiration from many animal species. According to Dreamworks' Youtube Video Series, "The DreamWorks Download", ''"Toothless' skin texture was inspired by a combination of bat skin, shark skin, and reptile skin." Cloudjumper In a communication with the Entertainment News Site, Empire Online, DreamWorks Animation character designer Simon Otto, describes Cloudjumper (and by extension, the Stormcutter species) as "a cross between a grey owl, a Great Dane, a vampire bat and an X-wing star fighter." Triple Stryke The Strike Class dragon Triple Stryke appears to be based off a wasp, a scorpion and a bat. Trivia *In Dragon Eye of the Beholder, Part 2, Gobber teasingly calls Gothi an "Old Bat". Gallery BadMoonRising-Bats2.JPG|In "Bad Moon Rising" Underworld-BatsBears.JPG|In "Underworld" Smeltdown-Twins.JPG|In "Smeltdown" How to Create Your Dragon Chart.png References * *''100 HTTYD Facts Only True Fans Know'' DreamworksTV, (Published on Aug 27, 2015). YouTube. *''How To Create Your Dragon: The Inspirations Behind The Creatures''. Empire Online. (Published on July 10, 2014) Site Navigation Category:Animals Category:School of Dragons Category:Dragons: Race to the Edge